Description

Who doesn't love this Mediterranean/Middle Eastern treasure? Vegan baklava is actually extremely simple to make with store-bought phyllo dough! Step-by-step video instructions are available.

Ingredients

Scale

For the Baklava:

1 lb, 21 sheets of phyllo dough* (~450 grams, 42 half sheets)
2 cups of walnuts or pistachios, finely crushed
1 1/8 cup plant-based butter (2 sticks)

For the Syrup:

1 3/4 cups of sugar*
1.5 cups of water
juice of 1 lemon

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Instructions

To make the syrup, mix the sugar and water, then juice the lemon in a saucepan. Boil the syrup, then reduce heat to a simmer until it thickens. Set aside to let cool.
In a separate saucepan, melt the plant butter and brush some of it onto a rectangular baking tray.
Layer two sheets of phyllo onto the pan, and generously brush the top with butter. You may have to cut the store-bought phyllo in half depending on the size of your baking tray to make them fit (mine was 9 x 13 in).
Layer two more sheets of phyllo and brush the top with butter. Continue until half the phyllo sheets are layered. At this halfway point, add the walnut or pistachio filling.
Onto the filling, layer the rest of the phyllo sheets and butter (two sheets, brush; two sheets, brush).
Cut the layers all the way into squares, rectangles, or diamonds and pour over the leftover butter.
Bake at 325°F for 45 minutes. If it still doesn't have a golden brown color, increase the temperature to 375°F and bake until they do.
When it's baked, immediately pour in the cooled down syrup, and set aside the baklava, uncovered, to cool for at least a few hours before digging in.
Do not store baklava in the refrigerator—it will get soggy and you will lose all the crispiness we worked for. Instead, you can store it at room temperature for up to a week.

Notes

Keep the phyllo from tearing by storing it between two moist dishcloths while you assemble the baklava.

You can substitute the sugar with 2 cups of erythritol (per original recipe) or 3 cups of thinned out date syrup. Naturally, I can't guarantee the same regular results in taste.

I like my baklava not overly sweet— but if you want a more traditional, super-sweet dessert, double the amount of syrup.

Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour
Category: Dessert
Cuisine: Turkish, Greek